''Elseya albagula'', commonly known as the white-throated snapping turtle, is one of the largest
species
A species () is often defined as the largest group of organisms in which any two individuals of the appropriate sexes or mating types can produce fertile offspring, typically by sexual reproduction. It is the basic unit of Taxonomy (biology), ...
of
chelid turtle
Turtles are reptiles of the order (biology), order Testudines, characterized by a special turtle shell, shell developed mainly from their ribs. Modern turtles are divided into two major groups, the Pleurodira (side necked turtles) and Crypt ...
s in the world, growing to about
carapace
A carapace is a dorsal (upper) section of the exoskeleton or shell in a number of animal groups, including arthropods, such as crustaceans and arachnids, as well as vertebrates, such as turtles and tortoises. In turtles and tortoises, the unde ...
length.
The species is
endemic
Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...
to south-eastern
Queensland
Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
,
Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
, in the
Burnett,
Mary
Mary may refer to:
People
* Mary (name), a female given name (includes a list of people with the name)
Religion
* New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below
* Mary, mother of Jesus, also called the Blesse ...
, and
Fitzroy River drainages. This species is entirely
aquatic, rarely coming ashore and is chiefly
herbivorous
A herbivore is an animal anatomically and physiologically evolved to feed on plants, especially upon vascular tissues such as foliage, fruits or seeds, as the main component of its diet. These more broadly also encompass animals that eat n ...
, feeding on the
fruit
In botany, a fruit is the seed-bearing structure in flowering plants (angiosperms) that is formed from the ovary after flowering.
Fruits are the means by which angiosperms disseminate their seeds. Edible fruits in particular have long propaga ...
s and
bud
In botany, a bud is an undeveloped or Plant embryogenesis, embryonic Shoot (botany), shoot and normally occurs in the axil of a leaf or at the tip of a Plant stem, stem. Once formed, a bud may remain for some time in a dormancy, dormant conditi ...
s of
riparian
A riparian zone or riparian area is the interface between land and a river or stream. In some regions, the terms riparian woodland, riparian forest, riparian buffer zone, riparian corridor, and riparian strip are used to characterize a ripar ...
vegetation,
alga
Algae ( , ; : alga ) is an informal term for any organisms of a large and diverse group of photosynthetic organisms that are not plants, and includes species from multiple distinct clades. Such organisms range from unicellular microalgae, suc ...
e, and large aquatic plants.
First proposed as a species by John Goode in the 1960s,
[Goode J. 1967. ''Freshwater tortoises of Australia and New Guinea (in the family Chelidae)''. Melbourne: Landsdowne. 155 pp.] it was finally described in 2006.
[ The species is named from the Latin ''alba'' = white and ''gula'' = throat, which is a reference to the white blotching present on the throats of adult females in the species.][
The type locality for the species is the Burnett River in south-eastern Queensland, but it is also found in the Mary and Fitzroy River drainages to the north of the Burnett.][ Some have argued for each of these rivers to represent different species, but ]DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid (; DNA) is a polymer composed of two polynucleotide chains that coil around each other to form a double helix. The polymer carries genetic instructions for the development, functioning, growth and reproduction of al ...
, morphological, and morphometric analyses does not support this conclusion.
Etymology
The specific name Specific name may refer to:
* in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database
In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules:
* Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
, ''albagula'', is derived from the Latin adjective ''alba'' meaning white and the noun ''gula'' for throat, both of which are feminine
Femininity (also called womanliness) is a set of attributes, behaviors, and Gender roles, roles generally associated with women and girls. Femininity can be understood as Social construction of gender, socially constructed, and there is also s ...
. Hence, the name means "white-throated" and refers to the white or cream throat commonly seen in adult females of this species.
Description
The carapace of this species is broadly oval, but is blunt at the front. In younger animals, it has keeled scutes along the back. The carapace is dark brown to black in color, smooth with no growth annuli and generally lackluster. The plastron
The turtle shell is a shield for the ventral and dorsal parts of turtles (the Order (biology), order Testudines), completely enclosing all the turtle's vital organs and in some cases even the head. It is constructed of modified bony elements such ...
is heavily stained in adults, appearing black over the true base color of yellow to cream. The plastron is narrow compared to the carapace.
The head is large and robust with a complete head shield that does not approach the ears. The tomial sheath is large, and inside an alveolar ridge
The alveolar process () is the portion of bone containing the tooth sockets on the jaw bones (in humans, the maxilla and the mandible). The alveolar process is covered by gums within the mouth, terminating roughly along the line of the mandib ...
is distinct and well formed. The head is typically dark brown to grey above and, in females, is usually blotched with cream to white in the throat region.
Biology
White-throated snapping turtles are amongst a handful of other turtle and fish species in that they can undertake cloacal respiration, absorbing oxygen from the surrounding environment through their cloaca whilst submerged.
Conservation
Three major factors affect the survival of this species. The first is nest predation and nest destruction, particularly by introduced species such as foxes that dig up the nests and cattle which trample them.[Hamman, M., Schauble, C.S., Limpus, D., Emerick, S.P., and Limpus, C.J. (2007). Management plan for the conservation of ''Elseya'' sp. (Burnett River) in the Burnett River Catchment. ''Environmental Protection Agency''.] The second is the damming of the rivers in which they occur, with all but one of the rivers in which the species is found now dammed to some degree. This changes the temperatures within the river, affecting reproduction. It also affects the remodeling of sand banks during flood events, eventually leading to unusable nesting sites. The populations are aging, meaning that larger numbers of adults have little recruitment. The last factor is the damage to individuals as they get washed over dam walls to their deaths.
As well, an application by coal seam gas company Santos to dump untreated wastewater in the Dawson River threatens a population of white-throated snapping turtles according to the Independent Expert Scientific Committee on Coal Seam Gas and Large Coal Mining Development.
A number of actions have been proposed. A head start program is being supported by the Queensland government where eggs are incubated at a hatchery with the young then released and monitored. Also active nest site protection prevents predation and trampling of existing nests. "Turtleways" have been proposed in the dams to allow turtles to get by these structures without being killed by the fall over the dam wall.
References
External links
{{Taxonbar , from=Q2270551
Elseya (Pelocomastes)
Reptiles described in 2006
Taxa named by Scott A. Thomson
Endemic fauna of Australia
Turtles of Australia